Not Unlike A Fairytale
by nicfanz
Summary: He was not her prince. He could not whisk her on his white horse. He could not save her. But unbeknownst to him, he was and did all of those things. Brulian.


Brooke quietly closed the door after watching Sam fall asleep. It was a long night for the 15 year old. It was a long night for the both of them. After Sam had run out of her home, Brooke went to the bar and sought Owen's help. Big mistake. Not only did he refuse to help but he had accused Sam of not being her kid. Furious and desperate, Brooke had turned to Julian, the ex who came to shake up One Tree Hill--- and produce Lucas' movie. Julian had said it was not his problem and proceeded to walk out the door, nonchalantly. She had then walk to a diner where Sam usually hung out. She had seen him there getting a cup of coffee. The cashier had told her that Julian had asked about Sam, too. For some reason, she had felt compelled to run after him, and she did. At that moment, she had seen him throw his cup of coffee into a trash can. She had chased after him and begged him to help her find Sam. Reluctantly, he had agreed. After three hours of frantic searching, they had finally found the teenager sitting on a sidewalk, with tears streaming down her face. Brooke had run up to her and asked her what was wrong. Sam just hugged her and apologized over and over. Brooke had rubbed her back and told her everything was okay and that they were going home.

"Is she asleep?" Julian asked.

Brooke whirled around in surprise, obviously not expecting the 6'2 man to be standing right behind her. But she nodded. "Yeah, she's sleeping.''

"Maybe you should sleep, too. You look tired," Julian commented, stuffing his hands into his pockets.

His tone was not laced with worry of a friend or a loving boyfriend. But Brooke was shocked anyway. Julian saw the look on her face and quickly added, "Not that I care or anything.''

Brooke smiled. "Of course not. That would make you 'that guy,''' Brooke remarked, referring to the moment at the diner.

Julian nodded. "Exactly. You're finally understanding me," he quipped. "Well, I have to get going. Hopefully your 'daughter' won't run away again so I can get some rest." The producer turned to head down the stairs.

"Are you implying that you would help me if Sam runs away again?" Brooke questioned with her arms crossed.

Julian looked back at her. "I'm not implying anything, Brooke.''

She felt a shiver run down her spine when he said her name. "Why don't you stay for the night? It's late out. You must be tired from helping me search for Sam.'' Her head was telling her that it was not a good idea to have a semi-stranger sleep overnight at her house with what recently happened at her clothing store. But her heart was telling her that a man who had helped her so much deserved a nice place to crash for the night.

"I told you Brooke. I'm not that guy. I'm not Lucas. I'm not going to whisk you onto my white horse and bring you back to my castle. I'm not prince charming. I can't…save you," he finished.

She looked into his eyes and she could find no trace of amusement or the usual sarcasm. "I'm not asking you to save me," she said, holding back a lump in her throat. She wondered if he knew about her attack or if he was referring to her loneliness without Lucas. "All I'm doing is offering you a place to stay for the night. That is all. Nothing more, nothing less.''

He looked at her, seeming to contemplate her offer. "Okay, but I'm taking the couch," he said with a grin.

That eased the tension and she proceeded to smile, also. "I'll grab a blanket and pillow from the closet.''

* * *

Brooke hummed to herself as she flipped two eggs over in the frying pan. There were a stack of pancakes and a bottle of maple syrup already on the table. She put the finished eggs onto a large white plate and a second later, two pieces of toast popped up from the toaster. She laid the slices of bread on the plate and put the plate on the table.

"Breakfast!'' An awoken Sam squealed happily and she quickly ran to sit down.

"And good morning to you, too," Brooke said, ruffling the teenager's messy hair affectionately.

"Is that toast I smell?" A masculine voice asked sleepily.

"Hey, breakfast is ready. Care to join us?" Brooke smiled at the sight of Julian in his bedroom hair, yawning and rubbing his eyes.

"Don't mind if I do.'' He grinned and quickly sat down next to Sam. He stared at her plate hungrily and slid it over to his side.

"Hey, that's mine!" Sam yelled.

Brooke lightly slapped Julian's hand and placed another plate of eggs and toast on the table. "This one is yours,'' she said, raising one eyebrow.

"You hit me," Julian whined, pouting. His complaint was short lived as he looked at his plate and hungrily devoured the delicious meal.

"So what are your plans today?" Brooke looked at Sam, but the question was to both of them.

"I'm going to hang at the record store," Sam said with her mouth full.

"Work on my movie," Julian replied while chewing his toast.

"Hey, no talking with your mouth full," Brooke scolded Julian.

"But Sam did, too," Julian protested, pointing at the smirking teenager.

"Well, she's a kid. What's your excuse?" Brooke retorted, grinning.

"As much as I love to keep this banter going, I have to go," Julian said, looking at his watch.

"Where are you going?" Brooke asked, feeling a pang of sadness. It scared her that she was bothered by such a simple matter.

"Well, production on Lucas' movie is starting soon and I have to get everything in order. Thanks for the breakfast." Julian got up and placed his plate in the sink. "See you later, ladies," he said with a smile before heading towards the door.

"Julian, why don't you come over to dinner?" Sam asked suddenly.

Julian looked at her and then at Brooke. Brooke looked at Sam then at Julian. "I don't know if your mom would be okay with that," Julian said, still looking at Brooke.

Brooke kept staring at the producer when Sam called her name, which awoke her from her trance. "Oh—it's okay with me," she said quickly.

Sam smiled. "Great.''

"Great," Julian remarked with his trademark grin. He gave her a salute. "See you at 1900 hours.'' He walked out with Sam laughing at his antics.

Brooke couldn't help but laugh too.

* * *

Brooke took the pan of meatloaf from the oven and placed it on the dining room table. The aroma of the meatloaf filled the kitchen and Sam's stomach growled. "Can we eat it yet?" the teenager whined hungrily.

"Not yet. Julian's not here."

"Well, where is he?" Sam asked impatiently, holding up her knife and fork.

Brooke frowned. She was wondering the same thing. It was 6:58 and there was no sign of the he-devil. "I don't know, Sam,'' the fashion designer replied honestly.

"Well, two more minutes then I'm starting without him," Sam vowed, pouting.

Brooke nodded. "Two more minutes.''

"Two more minutes until what?" a voice said in the doorway.

"Julian!" Brooke cried in surprise---and happiness? She shook away the thought.

"What took you long, doofus?" Sam asked irreverently.

"Sam!" But even Brooke could not hold back a smile at the teenager's nickname for the producer.

"I said 1900 hours." He glanced at the clock in the kitchen. "Looks like I'm early.'' Julian walked to the table and saw the meatloaf on the table. "Oooh, meatloaf—my favorite. How did you know?" he asked, looking at Brooke.

"It's Brooke's favorite, too," Sam answered and proceeded to cut a piece of meatloaf for herself.

Julian sat down across from her. "Sam, cut me a piece, too.''

"Cut your own piece." She placed the large cutting knife back on the table and began eating.

Julian pointed his fork at her. "Is this the thanks I get for helping your mom look for you?"

Sam rolled her eyes and sighed. "Okay, okay. I'll be nice this one time.'' Sam sliced off a big piece of meatloaf and placed it on Julian's plate.

"Thank you," he said with a smile. "Now pass me the basket of rolls," he ordered.

Sam took one roll and threw it at him, hitting him squarely in the chest. He picked it up, eyed it, and took a large bite. "Delicious," he said, licking his lips.

Brooke eyed the two of them and smiled. The three of them did not always get along. Sometimes they fought and sometimes Sam can definitely be disrespectful. But tonight, she felt like she had something she never had before, and never thought she could ever have---a family.

* * *

After dinner, Sam asked Brooke if she could watch TV in the living room. Brooke said yes and went to wash the dishes. Surprisingly, Julian offered to help.

"You want to wash dishes?" Brooke asked, raising her eyebrow doubtfully.

"I don't want to but seeing that you gave me a place to sleep and cooked me two meals, it's the least I could do," he said with a shrug.

She smiled and threw him a white cloth. "I'll wash, you dry.''

With Julian's help, Brooke managed to wash the dishes in ten minutes. She was wiping her wet hands when Julian yawned.

"Well, I better get going. I have a long day tomorrow."

Before she could stop herself, she blurted, "Why don't you stay here?"

He looked at her. "Brooke, I told you—''

She cut him off before he could tell her that he "was not that guy" again. "I'm just offering a place to crash. That's it. Nothing more, nothing less." She looked at him, waiting for an answer.

He sighed. "I guess it's me and the couch again," he said dramatically.

Brooke grinned. "I'll grab a blanket and pillow.'' She was heading towards the closet when he spoke.

"You know I can't save you, Brooke," he said seriously, but his eyes were soft.

Brooke wiped a tear from her eye and looked back at him. "I know, Julian. I know."

Before him, it was her and Sam. They got along, but there was still something missing-- a hole in Brooke's heart that Lucas used to fill. When Owen came along, Brooke thought he could fill the empty space, but he couldn't. Then came Julian. From the moment they met and traded witty remarks, she knew he was someone special. When he threw away that coffee cup and helped her look for Sam, it confirmed her thoughts. After that night and today, Brooke knew he was the missing piece of the puzzle that is her heart.

So he was wrong. He did save her. More than he could ever know.


End file.
